Area woman crowned Pennsylvania honey queen

January 2, 2012

A Tyrone-area woman was recently named as the 2012 Pennsylvania Honey Queen during the Pennsylvania State Beekeepers Association's annual winter meeting.

Jessica Long, 20, the daughter of Gary and Jennifer Long, was excited to receive the award.

"I am really excited; it will be an awesome experience for me," Long said. "Last year's queen traveled 25,000 miles."

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Jessica Long

As the 2012 Pennsylvania Honey Queen, Long will travel throughout the state promoting the beekeeping and honey industries by attending schools, fairs, festivals and participating in media interviews. Long will represent Pennsylvania in 2013 when she competes for the American Honey Queen title during the American Beekeeping Federation convention in Hershey.

Long, who works as a sales associate at Boscov's in Logan Town Centre, is a 2009 graduate of Bishop Guilfoyle Catholic High School and has an associate's degree in business administration, with a focus on marketing, from South Hills School of Business & Technology.

She said she is relatively new to beekeeping.

"We started this past summer. We have one hive but plan to have seven by the end of next summer," Long said.